Journeys of a King
by Wends
Summary: Buried in shadow and background, the mouse King's story finally comes forward. [holy smokes, it's mickey centric! response to a challenge. rated for nothing at the moment, but do expect this to change]


A/N 1: Hadn't intended to add a note up here, but as I was typing this I figured I'd better clarify something. I use that scary thing called 'proper grammar' (or actually just an allusion towards such), so if someone's thinking, it'll appear as it should - 'rather like this,' the authoress thinks. "Spoken text, of course, is like so," she clarifies. So if you see something in italics, _it just so happens that this is text in a book_. Not thoughts. There we go. Just so there's no confusion. More author notes are located at the end of the fic, so I can stop wasting your reading time and move along to the disclaimer and the story.

Disclaimer: I in no way own Kingdom Hearts (or any of the other games/franchises included therein). Don't sue; I'm simply an E5 in the USN, therefore I have no money. Ha.

_-BEGIN FIC-_

Journey of a King  
Chapter 1 - The Magician

A merry whistle echoed down the expansive hallways, accompanying the thumping rhythm of large shoes beating their steady cadence on heavily crafted marble tiles.

The slowly setting sun poured its fading red and gold rays across the land, staining everything with the tinge of dusty bronze. Tall white walls veritably glowed a soft orange. Golden scrollwork that traced those normally white expanses glittered brilliantly, their deep hues enhanced by the cascading falls that showered their light over them. Red carpets were dark absorbent pools of crimson, soft stains upon effervescent white flooring. Rainbows, the bright pastels of morning squelched by the more muted tones of the coming evening, danced from the beveled edges of giant panes of glass held in place by almost delicate bars of goldenrod.

The steady music of two marching feet stamping out their tune's time faded as the only occupant of the hallway came to a halt before one of those massive windows, the whistle falling forgotten from slack lips as huge eyes gazed across the landscape segregated from the huge and lavish hallway's interior by giant glass walls. A soft smile lifted the mouth's corners as black pupils drank the sight hungrily, watching glistening light gently lay itself upon emerald leaves and glittering green grass, dance upon smoothly raked brown paths and off the huge white terraces and towers of the rest of the huge castle of which the occupied hallway was only a small portion.

As the sun drifted down through the soft pastel blue sky, its light staining the giant and puffy clouds that lazily strolled overhead gold and orange and pink and red, white gloves pressed to the interior of the hallway's windows and lips pursed to blow an appreciative whistle.

The center of the heart carved from the top of the centermost hedge's stray branches shone brilliantly, the sun framed perfectly in its hollow frame and casting light as if the day's star was its own throbbing beat.

"Sure is a pretty start to a night," the hallway's occupant said softly, drawing his gloved white hands away from the glass and letting a serene smile smoothly slide across his lips.

For many a minute, the small person stood at that window, watching as the sun slipped from its heart-shaped frame to dip into shadows and hide from view behind the rest of the massive castle. A hearty sigh leaked from his lips as he finally pried himself away from the massive glass wall.

"Well, better get goin'. Minnie's gonna fret herself silly if I don't get to the library," he professed to the empty hallway with a chipper voice and a merry laugh. Turning back towards the destination he'd had in mind before he'd turned to appreciate the sunset, he resumed his tiny sojourn. This time, his feet rapidly thundered down the hall, huge yellow shoes squeaking on polished marble instead of thumping in time to his cheerful song.

Running so swiftly that his thin black tail streamed behind him in a straight line and his baggy pants were all but pressed to skinny, rapidly moving legs, the small mouse rounded a few quick corners before coming face to face with large oak double doors. His shoes squealed as he skidded to a handy halt. Taking a moment to straighten his shirt and ensure all of his buckles were properly done, he put a happy grin on and walked confidently into the room.

"So there you are!" a high-pitched voice all but hissed.

"Eh heh heh," the mouse said, sheepishly lifting a huge white gloved hand to rub his head behind his gigantic round ears, "sorry I'm late, Minnie."

"Really, whatever am I to do with you, Mickey?" the mouse woman in her billowing pink dress professed as she placed her white gloved hands on her hips. "This is the third time this week you've been late for Donald's presentations on the tomes!"

"Yeah, Your Majesty," the duck grumped.

Mickey smiled warmly even as he perused the room.

Bathed in casual candlelight and the glow of a roaring fire that filled the fireplace, the library was a cozy den where all could relax. A few heavy wood tables were scattered errantly through its massive expanses, warm chairs with plush cushions dilly-dallying about them. Shelves reaching eight tiers high circled the room, built into every surface that made up the walls – even the columns had been carved into to make room for more volumes. Dark bindings with metallic accents caught the light of fire almost as beautifully as the hallway that had sparkled under the sun's rays, adding to the inviting atmosphere.

In those tomes rested vast arrays of knowledge, current and past events that shaped worlds and kingdoms, research that was completed or underway or even about to commence all captured by odd magic that had been crafted and handed down to the King by his one-time master Yen Sid. Not just research and knowledge, but every story ever told also rested on those pages – nightmarish ghost stories that flowed around campfires, merry bedtime stories that put children's minds at ease before they entered the realm of dreams, legends and tall tales, fables and quips. If it was imagined, by magic it was there for another to read and enjoy.

Perusing the novels was a convoluted and complex task only assigned to those with the drive to keep up with the constantly changing contents of those books. It seemed every month a new stack of tomes would appear, the library expanded, new knowledge waiting to be read.

Donald was one of the most dedicated individuals Mickey had ever met when it came to keeping track of what had appeared. The duck, while short tempered and given to wild bouts of fury over the oft times ridiculous contents of those pages, enjoyed the chore vastly when he came across new spells, new vestiges of wisdom never before witnessed in Disney Kingdom.

Plus Donald seemed to enjoy the excuse for getting away from Daisy when she was coercing Minnie into one scheme or another to get their respective men to lavish them with dates and presents.

Mickey could fully understand that sentiment.

Focusing on the other inhabitants in the room, he smiled brightly even as such an expression was not reflected.

Donald was looking the tiniest bit muffed – he was stamping one webbed foot on the library's tiled floor, the other solidly planted in place as was his butt in his chair. He drummed his fingers errantly on the table he sat at, the open tome before him bearing wrinkled pages from what was certainly angered, rough handling before his mouse liege had walked in. His bill was resting in the palm of his other hand, that limb's elbow seated on the other half of the abused book. His angled magician's conical cap sat crookedly atop his head, and his sailor's shirt was wrinkled around his body with the flap that normally lay so nice and flat upon his back bunched around his neck. Blue eyes were squinted and glaring even as he let a ruffled, haggard sigh burst from his mouth.

Minnie, her huge pink dress billowing around her, stood near the fireplace. Her daintily pointed shoes barely poked their pink tips out from under layers of ruffles that began at her hips and ended in a soft sweep upon the floor. Clinging to her smooth upper torso and billowing into puffy balls at her shoulders, the short sleeves of her dress revealed her slim black arms nicely even as they lay crossed over her chest, accompanying the light tapping of one of those dainty shoes.

His grin becoming more sheepish than merry, Mickey reflected on the fact that it was a good thing Daisy wasn't in the room – that duck wasn't at all afraid to let anyone, even her King, know her mind.

"Gosh guys, I'm sorry I'm late," he started. "I just got a bit caught up on my way over."

Minnie's face finally relaxed from its scowl and warmed with a kind smile. "Oh Mickey, it's alright. We're just rather stressed thanks to the information that showed up in the tomes today."

"Oh really?" Mickey pondered, scratching his chin with one enormous gloved hand. "Let's hear it, Donald."

Grousing under his breath, Donald finally lifted his bill from his hand and began to point at the tome he had on the table before him. "There's something really strange happening across the universe, Your Majesty. Something to do with all the different worlds!"

"The different worlds?" Mickey mused. "You mean all the worlds that used to be one before they were separated all those ages ago?"

"Yes," Donald confirmed with a nod. "According to this, the barriers between the worlds are being knocked away."

"Golly, that's a great thing!" Mickey exclaimed as he thumped one hand into the palm of the other. "That means that whatever's been holding everyone apart for so long's finally been finished! The world can be whole!"

"I don't know if it's that great of a thing, Mickey," Minnie's soft voice confided as she walked to his side and laid one of her hands on his shoulder.

"Yeah," the duck at the table huffed. "It's not just that the world borders are falling. The books mention something about darkness being behind it."

"Darkness…?" Mickey softly breathed.

A huge crash and a rumble pouring through the castle interrupted the moment.

"What the heck was that?" Donald exclaimed, his next phrases colorful and lost among his ducky garble as he held onto the table and squawked as candles fell over.

"I don't know!" Mickey shouted as he grabbed onto his Queen and held her tightly.

The rumbling and quaking slowly subsided.

Lifting her head, Minnie took a deep breath. "Was that an earthquake?" she softly pondered.

"Couldn't have been!" Donald swiftly bit. We've never had an earthquake here at Disney Kingdom!"

"I'll go outside and check for damage," Mickey swiftly proclaimed.

"Are you sure that's safe?" Minnie's concerned voice called.

"I'll be fine! You guys stay here. I've gotta make sure everyone's alright!" the mouse responded even as he fled the library.

The environment he'd just passed through a scant amount of time ago was so vastly different that it made ice flow through Mickey's veins.

Once again, the glorious hallway was filled with the thumping of footsteps racing down its length. This time, however, there was no merry whistling to accompany the steady rhythm. This time there was only the squeaking of shoe tread, the huffing of breath, the gasps of a tired mouse as he raced down his chosen path.

The sun had long since set. The hard light of a crescent moon was all that remained to light the hallway now, casting cold reality across the marble tiles and stoic, strong walls. Golden scrollwork shined silver with the faintest touch of yellow coloration. Eerie shadows played through the walkways, cast from the gnarled look of the windows' frames. Doors loomed and towered, ceilings lost in the heavens flickered into existence for the barest moments before teasingly fading back into shadows to give the impressions of things lurking above and awaiting their prey.

Mickey swallowed down any fear that might have played along his nerves as he finally reached the stairway that plunged down around a soft corner to reach those doors that lead to the center courtyard of his massive Kingdom's castle.

The red carpet looked like a river of spilled blood as it stretched into the abysmal darkness resting down that flight of stairs.

Shaking his head to ward off any hesitation, the mouse plunged immediately down those steps and pressed his gloved hands against the wooden obstacle that barricaded him inside his now surreal and creepy castle.

Emerging into the lush garden, staring around for the source of the huge rumbling and crash that had occurred just moments before, he shivered as a cool breeze whistled through the rustling dark leaves whose countenance was jagged and eerie. Strolling away from those reaching branches, the mouse stared at a huge, oddly shaped chunk of material that had burrowed itself into the ground. "An asteroid hit?" he pondered.

His attention was swiftly drawn away as a flash of light above caught his eye.

Directing his view to the heavens, he gasped.

A star, one of those that had always been a bright point in his night sky, flickered explosively before rings of light burst from its center.

Parts of it fell away, streams of light barreling recklessly across the dark sky of night. Those streams wavered, waned, fluttered and faded, consumed by the vast curtain of darkness above.

Only a small sliver, faint and fading, remained where that huge, comforting star had been.

"Your Majesty!" Donald's gravely voice sounded even as the pounding of webbed feet approached the stationary mouse. "Look in the tome! Something just appeared!"

Taking the book swiftly from the duck's shaking hands, Mickey's mouth dropped open as he perused the glowing words whose silvery script had freshly flowed.

Even as the heavens above erupted again, dark shapes similar to the one that had already been observed plowing down from the sky where previously nothing but dark sky at night and blue sky at day could be seen, the mouse stood perfectly still.

As his subjects raced across the grounds to deftly avoid the giant oddly shaped asteroids that pummeled his Kingdom, he was gulping down a shiver of terror as he read the newest entry in the tome that was recording current events.

His eyes could not tear themselves from the river of text that appeared, spelling out words of doom he had hoped to never see.

_And so did the shadows swim across the Garden, their darkness damping its brilliance, their claws plucking those unripe SeeDs from the ground before they could come to fruition, their teeth gnawing those SeeDs who had matured and tearing from them their strength, their spirits, their hearts._  
_And so was all existence denied through the touch of darkness rather than the castings of magic, the episode of power held in the hands of the undefeatable wielders of Hyne's power brought abruptly to an end.__  
And so was time and space compressed for salvation rather than destruction, sweeping four brilliant hearts safely from the rubble of the fallen lands and casting them to the far reaches of existence, to begin their lives anew in new eras far from the withering Garden from whence they came._  
_And so did the Lion's roar billow with pain, unheeded by those who rained upon the leaves of his home with terror and singularity even as he was torn from his Garden with Eden traveling within his heart – for his was the only heart to thunder; for his was the only heart to live – swept from the misery of the fallen, swept from the claws of those without hearts._

_Herein lies the account of the fall of Balamb.  
Herein lies the account of the fall of Centra.  
Herein lies the account of the fall of Esther.__  
Herein lies the account of the fall of Galbadia._

_Herein lies the account of the victory of the Heartless._

---)))000(((---)))000(((---)))000(((---

Mickey slowly lifted his hand from Mary Belle's skinny black arm, casting the old cow a kind smile. "That should do ya," he said brightly even as his Cure spell came to a slow fizzled stop, its green light fading into nonexistence.

"Oh, so very marvelous, Your Majesty," she thanked heartily as she rose to her feet, the bell around her neck clanging loudly with her motion as she let her looping gait carry her to her friends.

Sitting back on his bottom, the mouse swiftly ran a hand over his brow. The morning had been quite busy.

Once the sun had managed to crest the horizon, they'd been able to clearly see what had occurred in the midst of the night. The odd rumbling and crashing noises that had plagued all of Disney Kingdom throughout the reign of the moon had been caused by multitudes of collisions between the lands and structures that created Mickey's vast terrain and oddly shaped, colorful blocks of material.

Fortunately no one had been killed during the strange meteor shower. Very few people had been harmed at all. Mary Belle had scraped her arm open against the side of one large block of space material while dodging another, and she had one of the more severe accounts of everyone who'd come to the King and his premier magician Donald for healing that morning.

While Mickey's heart was gladdened by the safe condition of his people, he was disturbed by the condition of the lands.

After all, it wasn't every day that red, orange, blue, green and purple blocks flung themselves down from the sky and decided to punch holes in the perennial flower beds.

As Pluto came to his master's side, Mickey laid his hand on his dog's broad back and aimlessly pet him even as he mused over the events of the night past.

It wasn't just the meteor shower that had him on edge. It was also that book.

The book that had been writing the death of a world even as a star in the heavens shattered and flung the majority of itself into darkness.

"What do you think's goin' on, boy?" Mickey idly asked, glancing towards his faithful yellow dog.

As Pluto rose and barked with his thin black tail wagging wildly, Mickey arched one brow and rose to his feet as well. Dusting any dirt that had stuck to his shorts away with a few handy pats of his gloves, he jogged after the dog as he trotted off towards the library.

Donald glanced up as his King entered the room. Rising to his feet, he granted his liege a hasty salute. "Your Majesty!" he greeted.

"Ha ha, it's alright Donald. No one's here but us, right?"

"I got'cha," the duck said with a grin turning the corners of his bill. A few seconds later he was squawking and shooing Pluto away from a stack of books he'd had open on the table he'd been sitting at.

"What'cha got there, Donald?" Mickey asked innocently. "Pluto, down. I know you're interested boy, but you've gotta behave."

Even as the dog whined and sat down, Donald huffed victoriously at the mutt and plunked himself back down into his chair. "I was looking for more references to all that mumbo jumbo that appeared in the book last night," the duck began with a nod.

"Oh! You mean that Balamb and Eden?"

Waving one feathered hand, Donald snorted. "No, not them. They're dead now, right? Not too much to be gained by looking around for stuff about them. I was looking for information on the things that killed them."

"Heartless," Mickey breathed. He shivered – even muttering the word was enough to send terror-driven shivers racing through his bones.

"Exactly," Donald confirmed with a nod. "What's weird is that I haven' been able to find anything solid about them."

"Huh! You mean they're something new that's threatening all the worlds?"

"No, they're not new," the duck said, shaking his head slowly. "They're present through a whole lot of history. But there's not much known about them at any time. Fact is, just about all I could find that's remotely solid is the reoccurring references to keyholes allowing them to come into worlds. Or stopping them in others. At least there's always a story about it, regardless of what it does."

"Keyholes?" the mouse pondered, scratching his chin. "What are those?"

"Heck if I know," Donald groused. "But it does tie in with this other legend I found."

"Lemme see," Mickey quietly demanded, reaching for the tome even as Donald willingly handed it over.

Mickey was astonished by what he read upon the pages. A long tale of woe, of misery, of destruction and rule by those without hearts brought about by a horrible beast with no soul who came into possession of the universe's mightiest weapon. A story of worlds desecrated by one who had in his hands the key to the Heartless' power, the key to admit them into any world the wielder of that weapon desired. A proverb of hope, the very key that can lead to death and hopelessness caressing the hand of one made of light, reconstructing the worlds that had fallen by locking tight those doors that admitted darkness into their stained radiance. Death and life, darkness and light, blasphemy and faith all revolving around one singular item – the Keyblade.

Glossing over the pages with huge eyes, the mouse hummed deep in the back of his throat. "So according to this, a Keyblade exists. Something that can bring salvation or disaster."

"I don't much like the sound of it," the duck softly confessed. "Some of these stories say that the Heartless preceded the appearance of this Keyblade thing – that it arrives to the person with the strongest heart it can find, and that person chooses whether it will stop the Heartless or help them."

"So if these Heartless are appearing, that means that this Keyblade may be on the way."

Donald shrugged helplessly. "It depends on the story. There's the one you're reading, and then there's these."

Mickey raised his gaze from the book. The next moment, his book toppled onto the floor, its pages bending and folding under its own weight as gravity held it against marble tiles against its will.

The duck was patting a mound of books almost as tall as Goofy and as wide as Pete.

"Oh wow," Mickey mouthed, staring wide-eyed at the massive conglomeration of random tales. "So there's no way to know what's true?"

"Not really. For example, some of these stories talk about one Keyblade, just like the book you were holding," Donald began. "Others talk about multiple Keyblades. Heck, I found one that talks about a Keyblade War. Keyblades of Light, Keyblades of Darkness, Keyblades of Twilight, a Keyblade form the land that the Heartless come from. There's too many different stories to know which one's true," the duck lamented.

"A Keyblade…" the mouse breathed softly, scratching his chin. "This is all pretty darn interesting, yeah?"

"Yeah," Donald agreed. "Though we know nothing about any of this, there's one thing I've discovered that's actually pretty concrete."

"Give it to me," Mickey whispered, leaning forward in anticipation.

"There's one guy who's doing some pretty massive research into this stuff. He'd probably be the best guy to talk to about it if you really want to know something."

Mickey nodded, the curiosity shining in his eyes and imploring Donald to continue.

Bowing his head slightly, Donald huffed. "His name's Ansem."

"Ansem?" Mickey repeated. "Huh. Well, it's a start!"

"No it isn't," the duck snapped. "First off, this guy's on a completely different world! Even if the barriers between them are falling, there's still the issue of reaching a different one! And that's not the only thing. There's the issue of other people finding out about us and our home and the heartless and the fall of that other world that we all saw last night! And how much of that should get out?"

Quelling his excitement, the mouse frowned. "Hm, you've got a point there. I'm thinkin' that no one who doesn't already know 'bout the different worlds or the Heartless should get any wind of it. After all, findin' out that there's more worlds than the one you know about can be pretty shocking for a lot of people."

Donald shook his head slowly, glaring down the length of his bill at the table he was at. "Widespread pandemonium. Uncontainable chaos. People don't react well to big changes."

"Right," Mickey professed with an upraised finger. "That's why we've got to preserve the worlds' order. No one can know about this; not a soul Not unless they're already in on it."

"Got'cha," the duck agreed with a nod. "After all, wouldn't want more people panicking than necessary. And if they all tried to migrate from their worlds to others…."

"What'cha hesitatin' for, Donald?"

Glancing over, Donald slowly sighed, his breath long and filled with unspoken lamentations. "Well, think about it. There's something I keep remembering from the words that wrote themselves last night."

"You mean the fall of that world," Mickey quietly stated.

"Yeah. 'And so did the shadows swim across the Garden, their darkness damping its brilliance, their claws plucking those unripe SeeDs from the ground before they could come to fruition, their teeth gnawing those SeeDs who had matured and tearing from them their strength, their spirits, their hearts.' If you take the text literally, these Heartless guys went after these people's hearts."

Mickey let his hands fall limply at his sides, his fingers twitching slightly in their gloves. "So if the Heartless are attracted to strong hearts, if people start fleeing their worlds and goin' somewhere that they think will be safe they'll be drawin' the Heartless in with them."

"And what if they learn about Disney Kingdom?" Donald questioned, focusing big, worried eyes on his liege.

"I see your concern, Donald," Mickey assured him with a single nod. "And I agree. People should remain in their homes as long as possible – we've just gotta find a way to save those worlds before they can fall like the places listed in the book last night."

"But how're we supposed to do that?" Donald groused. "We can't even reach other worlds, let alone know how to stop them from falling!"

"I've got a thought," Mickey started slowly, scratching at his chin once more. "But I'll have to research it first."

"Be my guest," the duck huffed loudly as he got off of his chair and swept his hand towards the mound of books and the irrationally full shelves. "I'm going to spend some time with Daisy before you hatch another of your cockamamie plans and have me helping you."

A laugh leaked from the mouse King's lips before he nodded. "Fine by me, Donald. See ya later, then?"

"Sure thing, Your Majesty," Donald replied with a merry salute right before he ran out of the library's huge doors, his webbed feet slapping noisily all the way.

As the doors slowly slid shut and the latch that held them firmly in their closed position clicked with a resounding and almost ominous sound, Mickey slid around the large pile of books rising from the center of the room's floor. Running a gloved hand over the highest book he could reach, he sighed.

"Well, it's like Donald said. If the information in the books is way too vague, I've gotta find another source for something on these Heartless."

Picking up a random book, he flipped through it and stared with wide eyes at the pictures it displayed.

There was something about the image of the strange sword that reached for him, calling almost audibly from some unknown region of existence for him to grasp it.

A simple weapon, a simplistic design. A straight cylindrical haft, a rectangle at one end creating an enclosed hilt, the design of a triple-pointed crown upon its opposing end the 'teeth' of the key. A slender chain dangled from the hilt's end, lazily drifting behind the weapon and terminating in….

Mickey's eyes almost rolled out of his head.

It terminated in a simple series of circles. One large with two slightly smaller circles offset upon the ten and two o' clock positions of their larger base. The symbol that vaguely represented….

A mouse.

His very seal!

"Well, I'll be," Mickey softly muttered, his gloved fingers lightly tracing over the image even as his brain burned it into permanent memory. "What's this time tryin' to tell me? That I need to get involved? And soon? Or maybe it's telling me that the Keyblade is meant for me…."

Slowly closing the book, the mouse shook his head sharply to rid himself of the haunting lust to stare at that picture more. "C'mon, Mickey," he began, "we've gotta learn something about those Heartless first. And according to Donald, the books are too vague. So we've gotta talk to this Ansem guy."

Pondering for a few moments, he picked up another tome and flipped it open. A swift glance through the huge library's directory book granted him what he wanted.

"First off, I've got to find out something about this man."

Only a few mere minutes passed as the mouse browsed the expansive library before he found a hastily shelved book. Certainly it was the same volume that Donald had grabbed in his earnest search for wisdom concerning the befuddling events to occur in recent history.

Mickey wasn't at all prepared for what he was about to discover.

---)))000(((---)))000(((---)))000(((---

_Originally, it had no name._

_The island was blank and dreary, a blot of nothing surrounded by a vast sea. A veritable prison to those who were trapped upon it, forced to exist upon it by no crime of their own other than being born to such a deplorable land. An end to beginnings that had not had the chance to start, an end to journeys that had never been allowed to commence._

_Desolate. Dismal. Death._

_It existed as nothing, a barren wasteland bereft of any joy or hope, a connection between two vastly different hemispheres that enjoyed vastly different technologies and magic. One half swam in the warmth of the planet's Lifestream, a coagulation of the planet's very essence and power. One half shivered under the light of the planet's bloody moon, assaulted by teardrops of monsters pouring from the heavens. And between them, untouched by all, unblessed by all, resided those without promise._

_So had it been for a seemingly eternal span of time. One half of the planet was assaulted by an asteroid, a heavenly carrier of the embodiment of chaos and destruction; Jenova was captured, contained, researched. One half was rained upon by Hyne's teary-eyed moon; a crystal pillar shattered its lands, monsters rampaged wildly to decimate all who lived upon that broken continent. Jenova's half learned to harness the planet's essence, calling it Mako, converting it to materia to draw impossible might from the planet's own strength. Hyne's half learned to harness the power of the moon's monsters, drawing their magic, taming their wildest and most glorious to serve them as Guardian Forces. Jenova's people developed technology based on the Lifestream that seemed eternal, converting its flow into power they could harness – Hyne's people developed technology based on research of physics and of the forces of nature and derived the science behind past mysticism._

_Still in the center of all rested the nameless land, bleak and abandoned by all._

_Until one saw hope where previously there was hopelessness._

_From the dust and the dander of the forgotten rose a leader, a man with enough vision and strong enough determination to draw his forlorn people together. A man who wished for all to realize his dreams._

_He dreamed of an independent land, capable of its own stories and its own greatness._

_He dreamed of a hopeful land, one that would not be the death of journeys but rather the beginning of them._

_He dreamed of a grand land, one that would be known for its peace and its prosperity._

_And so, with his hope and his vision, he began to build._

_A miraculous feat, to draw such hope from those who had lived with no dreams for so very long. To draw such devotion to a prospect that to all realists seemed as obtainable as grasping the light of the stars in one's hand. But still, he drew them. And still, they built._

_In not so many years as one would think there were villages where once there was nothing but rocks and sand. There were canals where once there were cracked and dried plains. There were lush plants and bountiful flowers where once there was nothing._

_And in the center of the miracle rose a glistening beacon of hope, a symbol of what was possible if a people came together to realize their dream – a mighty fortress, a castle, a sign of realism where there before stood nothing but wispy whimpers for something great._

_The man who had lead those hopeless peoples of the barren land to greatness was proclaimed Ruler of the lands he had built._

_It was a position he accepted with humility and humble gratitude – leadership was not his goal, but rather the byproduct of necessity to realize the forgotten dreams of himself and those around him who were too terrified to take that tremulous step towards uncertainty._

_So it was that Ansem the Wise took to his castle, leading the people of the marvelously living lands to prosperity. Gathering his community into peaceful commune with all they had built and all they had drawn to life around them, he saw the grandeur of his gardens, the grandeur of his towns, the grandeur of his peoples and the grandeur of their lands._

_It was then that the lands obtained a name._

_They were radiant. They were a garden of hope. They were the realization of the dreams of the eternally repressed._

_He called his new home 'Radiant Garden.'_

_Soon it was that the other halves of the planet learned of his marvels and the glow of the lands that connected their vastly different worlds. It was a land of peace between two tremulous realities. It was a sigh of reprieve from the battles of survival. Radiant Garden was a paradise where time seemed to stand still, where all could dwell in peace, segregated from the tromping doom that plagued all who existed away from its brilliance._

_People came to visit. People came to stay. People came under the gracious invitation to all from Ansem, to experience the peace and tranquility that seemed otherworldly in the face of Jenova, in the face of Hyne. People came to escape the terror spawned by Shinra. People came to escape the horrors spread by continental wars financed by continents and fought through Gardens. People came to escape the research of Mako. People came to escape the crushing gauntlet of Galbadia. People came to escape the monsters spawned by the scientists' mistakes. People came to escape the all-encompassing might of Sorceresses._

_The man Ansem was no King – he was a researcher by nature, a dreamer by birth. He was not one to construct politics and trade agreements but one to build and discover. So did Radiant Garden remain a free land, an oddly peaceful lawlessness held in place by those people who populated its undulating lush hills. Ansem was a ruler in name only by his own view – by the views of those in the lands he wrought, he was a ruler as he was a savior of their very lives._

_So did he become tired of ruling, and so did he close himself in his magnificent castle. Still holding his people and their welfare in his heart, he nonetheless withdrew from their limelight, making only irregular visits to wish merriness and grant smiles while garnering his favorite treats and happy greetings from those who dwelled in his lands._

_Rumor held that he continued his research and his dreams, gathering unto himself a group of his land's youth who held similar ideologies. His apprentices dwelled in his fortification with him, removed from the world yet so very free to dwell outside of those walls if they so chose._

_Deeper and deeper into isolation did the good ruler delve that he became a rare sight amongst the streets, in the shops, and most oddly enough at the port where he'd receive his most favored treats from airships that arrived at regular intervals from the great cities to his land's east. A feeling of dread, a notion of terror began to fly over the lands, driving many people to seek refuge upon the shattered continent so close by to the west, upon the grand continent so close to the east. One way, the other way, towards Lifestream energy or the shivering cold light of the hateful red moon, people migrated from the brilliant creation they'd so fervently constructed so long ago._

_The one day the lands were segregated – the Radiant Garden that was the peaceful tether between two terror-stricken lands vanished._

_The upheaval was sudden and brutally effective – where once threw was town now was nothing but water, where once there was grass was nothing but waves. Where once there were people was nothing but fishes, where once a grand castle was nothing but empty sky. The rift was made plain upon both halves of the planet, the tear made obvious even as those hemispheres became their own worlds with their own moons and their own suns. Segregated by darkness, they rounded and became their own individual entities, unaware of their lost neighbors, uncaring of their isolation._

_Where once stood Radiant Garden was a foliage-flooded crater, the brilliance of the Garden's peaceful essence encased in the power of a single piece of Lifestream coagulated into an orb of materia – the wish for resolution and life that drove the creation of Radiant Garden, the peace and love and sanctity held within the hearts of those who dwelled there and the dreams and dedication of the good people who had built their paradise from nothing condensed into a single summon, the marvelous Knights of the Round. Glistening swords of gold, thirteen bringers of justice; heaven-sent harbingers against those who would desecrate the world of those people who would call upon them were the Knights. Saviors of the people of the planet. Saviors of the heroes who would call upon them for their salvation. They were angels to those who needed their mercy. They were doomsayers to those who sought to bring death to the innocents. They would eagerly stand against any threat, whether planetary or not, to preserve the sanctity and beauty of the world they loved. And so they were sealed in that cavern, waiting for those who would be brave enough to call upon their might, those who would have such care for the planet as to match their own, those who would be righteous enough to call upon them for the salvation of all that was good._

_Where once stood Radiant Garden was a sunken lair of obscenities, a dreary reminder of the bleak hopelessness of the world that had existed before Ansem had gathered his people and realized his dream. All that had terrified the timid mice of the land who existed under the heavy boot of reality, the rage and madness and hatred and rape and horror that made up their lives and nightmares coagulated into one mass. That mass, an infested horde of bitterness made reality, a festering pile of all humanity's darkness, twisted and distorted and vile and wicked became the wildest and most impossibly powerful of beasts, a magical entity never intended to be harnessed as its brethren were as a Guardian Force. The bowels of mankind's loathing, the gangrenous wound upon purity that was filthy sin congealed into an odd, almost angelic creature – a mass shimmering with brilliance like the Garden that had vanished rested atop the torso of a beautifully perfect woman, feathered white wings flowing from where eyes should have been upon the massive span that served the body as a head and legs fused into a sharp piercing point. She was dagger, she was temptress, she was celestial, she was slaughtering Garden. She was warm, famine, pestilence, death incarnate, designed to rip apart all who would dare to grasp her power and all who would dare challenge those powerful enough to hold her in obedience – she rotted in the brain of a weapon created to contain her and keep her buried for all time t the bottom of the sea, a sad testament to the wretched state of the world before Ansem's dream came true._

_Those two worlds, their tears different yet still so symbolic of the same place, delved into their segregated realities – Jenova terrified one, harnessing the power of her favored One-Winged Angel; Hyne terrified the other, his madness flooding the mind of the most powerful of Sorceresses and tempting her towards the path of ultimate destruction._

_Forgotten, buried, decayed in memory by the influx of realities woes lay Radiant Garden._

_Still it existed. Still it breathed. But never again was it to be as it was – never again was it to be a haven for those who sought peaceful respite from their respective lands, never again was it to be trod upon by the boots of strangers. Never again was it to be a land of peace and tranquility for the heavy hearted who had no hand in its creation, who had no birthright to the new and purified land. Alone, segregated as its counterparts were, Radiant Garden continued with its life in harmonious isolation._

_Within its castle's walls, however, darkness turned and rumbled._

_The very darkness that had been called by research._

_The very darkness that had shifted the barricade of the world, dividing it into three separate realities._

_In the basement of the castle, a hollow corner in a world of radiance, the curious phenomenon continued to bewilder and excite._

_So did Ansem and his apprentices continue their research._

---)))000(((---)))000(((---)))000(((---

"Well," Mickey breathed quietly as he closed the book and slid it back into its vacated space upon its shelf, "I'll be. So this Ansem guy still might be researching the darkness to this day. And I'll bet the Heartless go right along with that."

Reaching for the tome right next to the one he'd withdrawn, Mickey quickly scanned the pages. "Huh. Looks like the barriers around his 'Radiant Garden' world have started to crumble just like ours – says here they've had some pretty serious asteroid storms with wacky rocks."

A few more errantly grabbed books lead the mouse down one dead-end path and another, granting scant glances towards the origins of Keyblades and the purposes of keyholes then leaving all frustratingly open.

By the time the fire in the fireplace had run low, its embers casting a wan light over the room's floor and doing nothing to assist the paltry remains of candles in their task of lighting the room they inhabited, the King was pacing furiously while flipping through yet another book.

"Gosh, there's no straight answers. It's just as Donald said – the moment you think you've got one thing figured out, some other story goes and gives an entirely different spin. Sheesh."

Pushing his book back onto the shelf he'd pulled it from, Mickey planted his hands on his hips and drummed his white-gloved fingertips on his red shorts' buttons and belts.

He jumped, his feet running in the air before he came back down again, when the door suddenly clicked open. Panting madly, he planted one gloved hand over his scant chest.

"There you are, Mickey," Minnie greeted, a smile still on her lips.

"Ha ha," Mickey chortled, his laugh more of a nervous reflex than a sign of merriment. "Golly, why're you lookin' for me, Minnie?"

Cocking her head slightly to her right, the woman sighed, her lips curling slightly in a frown of exasperation. "You've already missed dinner. I was trying to find you to fetch you for bed."

At the mentioning of the words 'dinner' and 'bed' Pluto instantly roused from his nap and fled the room, tail wagging madly.

"Gosh. Already that late?" the mouse King softly pondered, turning his gaze to look into the fireplace rather than after his departed dog. The embers there flickered softly, their dim orange light racing along the few remaining lumps of charred wood that populated the huge brick enclosure, the sparkle they gave far diminished from the grandeur they cast as flickering and lively flames.

"Sure is. Whatever it is, can't you wait until morning?" Minnie asked even as she approached her King, reaching out to take the hand he held over his heart into her hands and lift it towards her own bosom.

Ducking his head, Mickey furrowed his brow. Part of him agreed with his Queen – there was no rush to research the odd phenomenon that had occurred in the wan hours of the previous night. After all, despite any discoveries that he could make that night, what could he accomplish with that knowledge?

Where he currently stood, he knew of Ansem the Wise, founder of Radiant Garden and researcher of darkness, Heartless, and an odd phenomenon called Kingdom Hearts. He knew at least five different legends circulating around the mystical weapon called the 'Keyblade' and as many accounts of the purposes of 'keyholes' and where they might be located. He knew countless different batch of rhetoric about the purpose, creation, strengths and weaknesses of the Heartless and the variations therein. He knew of different Heartless types, of different Heartless purposes, and of different Heartless methods for attaining these different purposes.

With all of that information, he felt as he did when he'd first stared at the block of material that had slammed into his castle's courtyard – completely lacking in any true knowledge.

Even with all of his day's long efforts, he'd made either what could be construed as amazing bounds of progress or none at all. He knew much more than he did when he started, yet so much of it formed circulatory paths that he wasn't certain just how much was actually viable, vital or even noteworthy to his concerns.

So as far as he could discern, there was nothing he could currently do with any of the potential knowledge he'd already attained. No rushing was necessary, no hurry needed – after all, more progress in one day wouldn't be able to hurry any potential outcome from garnering that progress.

But something deep within the mouse King's soul nagged him on – even as he delayed, other worlds were in danger. Other worlds were potentially being toppled even as the one he'd read about during the late hours of the prior day had been. And he, one of the few and potentially informed, might have the ability to rescue them.

In that retrospect, all haste was needed. All effort was required. He needed to discover the secrets behind the movements of the Heartless, and he needed to curtail them quickly. He could potentially be the only person who could truly bring the terror that was flanking the universe to an end.

After all, the Keyblade did have his seal as its emblem.

It might very well be calling for him. It may be calling him to action even as he stood in his library surrounded by tomes of knowledge and holding hands with his Queen.

Shaking his head, Mickey quickly came to his decision. "Sure thing, Minnie. I'll turn in for the night. Just let me finish one more thing, alright?"

Quirking one brow, she released his hand to place her hands atop her billowing skirts. "And just what do you need to do that can't wait until morning?"

"Well, I need…."

Hesitating, Mickey mulled over his answer.

After all, he didn't want to worry his Queen.

He didn't want to keep her in the dark, either.

Sighing, he shrugged. Best to tell her the truth and receive her wrath now than later. "I need to figure out a way to get to another world, Minnie. I need to talk to a guy named Ansem."

Her other brow went up. "Oh really? And what about?"

He cringed – her tone of voice left no room for weaseling. "About the Heartless. About the darkness that consumed that star last night."

"Mickey, you aren't thinking about getting yourself involved-"

"I don't think I have a choice, Minnie," he cleanly interrupted even as he grasped her shoulders with his hands. Giving them a tender squeeze, he shook his head. "Something's moving. Something big. And I think that I'm being drawn into it. After all, it's my responsibility as a King to make certain my subjects are alright, right?"

"Well, yes," she timidly agreed.

"And there's no way I can be sure they're gonna be alright unless I found out what's going on with the other worlds and stop it from happening. You noticed how many of the stars are fading in the night sky?"

Nodding slowly, Minnie's eyes widened. "you don't mean…."

"Yep, 'fraid so. Those're other worlds, all meeting the same fate as that world we read about last night. At the rate the stars're fadin', it's only a matter of time until our Kingdom's in danger. I've gotta stop it. And to do that, I need to talk with this Ansem fellow and find out what he knows."

Bowing her head, she sighed quietly. "Alright. Be quick, will you?"

"Will do! Just that one task, and I'm coming right to bed."

"I'll hold you to that," the pink-clad mouse professed as she backed away a step, curtsied cutely to her King before turning on her heel and departing the library.

As she left, he quickly turned to the huge tiers of shelves behind him. "Alright. Just need to figure out how to get from one world to another," Mickey muttered to himself, running his fingers lightly along dark and thick book spines, walking along the shelves' lengths.

It wasn't long until he had his arms laden with books and his bottom seated in the plushy-cushioned chair at the library's most prominent desk.

"Well, where do I begin?" he pondered even as he flipped open the first cover.

---)))000(((---)))000(((---)))000(((---

"Rise and shine, Your Majesty!"

"Ai!" the mouse exclaimed even as he toppled right off his chair and landed with an 'umph' on the cold tile floor. Rubbing the back of his head behind his massive ears, Mickey groaned and blinked blearily until his vision finally decided that it was an opportune time to focus itself.

He was staring at a pair of big brown shoes overlaid with silver armor.

"you were sleepin' rather hard there, King Mickey. You alright?" a concerned voice questioned from high above him.

Looking up, Mickey smiled broadly. "Mornin', Goofy. Yes, I'm alright," he proclaimed even as he pried himself off of the floor he'd so recently made acquaintances with and dusted off his bottom, giving his tail one swift yank to straighten the kink sleeping in the chair all night had given it. Stretching and yawning mightily, he smacked his lips together a few times. "Mm. Just guess I was more tired than I thought."

"If I were you, Your Majesty, I'd stay clear of Queen Minnie and Daisy this mornin'. They're fetchin' to give you a piece of their minds. Don't know why Daisy's in on it though. Pro'lly just a girl thing. Hyuck!"

Holding his head, Mickey softly groaned. He'd completely disregarded his Queen's order to come to bed after he'd finished researching his one topic for the night.

Of course, he'd failed to finish researching that topic – indeed, he'd failed to find a decent start to answering his question.

He'd just fallen asleep in his books without garnering any new or useful information at all.

"You know, that's a swell idea, Goofy. Thanks, old pal," Mickey said as he patted the bipedal dog's arm and gave him a cordial nod.

"Well, I best get back to my rounds," the 'knight' of the castle proclaimed even as he slapped his gauntleted hand to his visor with an audible 'clang' and dizzily danced around while trying to come to attention.

Mickey barely sidestepped in time as Goofy landed one foot on top of the other and staggered swiftly in his direction while attempting to maintain his balance. "Goofy, look out!" he cried as his friend stumbled towards the nearest window, his metal-clad body clanging all the while.

"Ah ho ho ho hoy!" Goofy yelped as he toppled right out of the open orifice.

Running to the window, Mickey swiftly stuck his head out. Moments later he was breathing a sigh of relief as the bipedal dog pulled himself from a thoroughly demolished hedge with a sigh of 'Gawrsh' and a shake of his helmeted head.

"That Goofy," Mickey laughed as he returned to his desk. Even as his eyes fell across the stacks of books that rested before him, he felt a sigh bubble in his chest.

"Golly. Where do I begin again?" he questioned, flopping back into his chair even as he planted his elbow on the desk and plopped his chin into his palm.

He'd yet to answer the question as to how to travel between worlds.

"If only I had clue," he quietly muttered.

"Wark!" screeched a ducky voice from the library's entrance.

Lifting his gaze, Mickey stared as Donald tore into the room and quickly slammed the library's double doors shut. Clicking the lock into place, he bolstered the door's efforts and keeping whoever was chasing him by plastering his back against the orifice's obstructing wall and muttering under his breath.

"Trouble there, Donald?" Mickey inquired, his voice hinging on laughter.

"For you too, Majesty!" the mage quickly bit.

Mickey's eyebrows shot up as he heard his Queen's voice shouting from outside, "you! I know you're both in there! Get out here this instant! We're going to _talk_!"

"Oh gosh," Mickey whimpered, quickly bolting from his chair to join Donald in his efforts to keep estrogen-flooded balls of rage from entering their temporary haven.

Many a minute passed before the pounding finally came to an end and two separate sets of high heels could be heard stamping away angrily accompanied by bitter growls of discontent with all things male.

"That was a close one," Donald muttered, wiping one feathery hand across his brow right under the brim of his magician's hat.

"Woo, you can say that again," his King said with a sigh. "So, wanna tell me why Daisy's so mad at you?"

Glaring fitfully at the mouse, Donald barked, "Because she and Queen Minnie are looking for you, you ninny!"

Ducking his head sheepishly and rubbing behind his ears gain, Mickey laughed quietly. "Ha ha, guess you're right. Sorry 'bout that, buddy."

"Sorry my butt," Donald all but hissed as he stomped away from the door. "So, mind telling me why you decided to ignore your Queen's requests, Your Majesty?"

Clearing his throat, Mickey approached the table laden with books and patted the topmost tome with a gloved hand. "Well, I got to thinking last night. You know, Donald, we're witnessing something very bad happening right now."

"You mean the falling of the worlds? The overtake of darkness?" the duck muttered, strutting right out of his previously puissant mood and right into business.

"Exactly," the mouse confirmed. "And the way I see it, we're at least somewhat informed. We've got to do something to help."

"Because if we stop it from happening to other worlds, we stop it from ever coming here?" Donald enquired.

"Right on the ball."

"That's why I'm your court magician," Donald huffed proudly as he crossed his arms and tapped one webbed foot on the tile. "I've got brains, you know."

"I never doubted that," Mickey said with a grin. "So that's why I want you to help me."

"What do you need help with, Your Majesty?" Donald immediately asked, walking to his liege's side.

Sighing quietly, Mickey slipped back into his chair. "I'm trying to figure out how exactly I'm going to reach this Ansem fellow. From everything I read, I agree with you – he's the best place we can start if we're going to learn anything."

"So we've got to figure out how to reach other worlds," Donald easily surmised.

"Yeah. I can't figure out a starting point," the mouse lamented, letting his head plop lazily on his stack of books.

"That's simple enough," the duck huffed. "You remember the book from when the star fell?"

"Who could ever forget it?" Mickey sighed.

"Well, if you remember it, then the answer to where to start should be obvious," Donald said with a smirk. "C'mon, Mickey. Didn't it say that a lion escaped?"

Mickey blinked once. Then twice. By his third blink, he was sitting upright and slapping his fist into his palm. "By golly, I think you've got it, Donald!"

"So all we have to do is learn about this 'lion' that was mentioned, and then we can find out how he escaped."

The two burst as one towards the shelves, tearing through books left and right with haste and newfound purpose. Tome after tome bounced and skittered across the floor, making messy piles even as others were lifted from their resting places, puffed free of dust and swiftly perused.

"I've got it!" Mickey loudly proclaimed, holding a book aloft above his head in triumph. "this book's the account of that place that fell in the other one!"

"Ah, phooey," Donald huffed as he snapped his fingers, conceding victory to his liege.

As Mickey strutted to his chair and flopped himself back down into it, he cracked open the massive tome and began to lazily peruse.

"Hm. Balamb Garden. A military institute, mercenary headquarters and head of the front to stop Sorceresses. Recently fell in a devastating invasion by unknown entities crafted of darkness who targeted people's hearts."

"The Heartless," Donald breathed softly.

Nodding once, Mickey continued. "Says here that the only person to make it out of this 'Garden' place was its commander, popularly known as 'Balamb's Lion.' A guy named Squall Leonheart."

"Any reference in there to that 'Eden' thing the other book mentions?" the duck curiously questioned.

"Not right off," the mouse quickly answered with a clip of his head. "But it does go into a bit more detail concerning his escape. Says here that he was actually forcibly taken off the battlefield by a stranger from…. Well, I'll be! He was taken away by a guy from another world!"

"Someone figured out how to move between worlds?" Donald asked, astonishment flooding his voice. "Wow!"

"Yeah! Says here that he was taken by a man named Cid Highwind in a ship called a… gummi?"

"Gummi? What the heck is a gummi?" the duck pondered.

Mickey shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know."

"We can help!" a pair of tiny voices sounded form the floor.

Staring at one another with bewilderment obvious on their faces, Donald and Mickey then turned their gazes as one to the floor.

Standing amongst the piles of discarded books, a pair of chipmunks hopped up and down and waved.

"Sure seems like you're in a fix, Your Majesty," the chipmunk with the small black nose professed, crossing his tiny arms over his fuzzy little chest.

"Yeah! We heard the whole thing!" his red-nosed companion helpfully interjected. A moment later, he was solidly bopped over his head for his impromptu proclamation.

"Ignore Dale," the first chipmunk huffed.

"Why, if it isn't Chip and Dale!" Mickey said with a grin. "My finest engineers!"

"That's us!" Dale proudly stated as he jabbed his chest with his thumb.

"So you need to get off the planet, huh?" Chip mulled, scratching his chin with little fingers. "Shouldn't be too hard. After all, if someone else has already figured it out, all we have to do is find a book telling us how they did it and replicate it, right?"

"Easy as cake!" Dale said with a wide bucktoothed grin.

"That's pie," Chip hissed.

Donald glanced back to his liege. "I'll see what I can find, Your Majesty."

"Thanks, Donald," Mickey preemptively stated even as he continued reading the profile he'd found on the person who'd been so individualized in the tome he'd read on the fateful night that the asteroids had careened into Disney Kingdom.

A good hour passed, the duck yanking book after book off the shelf and flipping through them with the help of his two furry little helpers as the mouse continued his reading of the lengthy dossier he'd found. Soon enough, Donald interrupted his King with a swift jab of a finger in his shoulder.

"Found it, Your Majesty!"

Lifting his nose out of the book he'd been absorbed in, he blinked his eyes to clear text from his vision and grinned. "Really?" Mickey excitedly said.

"Chip and Dale are already on it, actually," Donald confided with a nod. "After all, we have plenty of material to work with."

"So, what's the mystery behind all of this? How did this Cid fellow do it?"

"Asteroid blocks," the duck said with a sagely nod.

Arching a brow, Mickey scratched his chin. "You mean those colorful ones that fell from the sky just a couple nights ago?"

"Yes," Donald confirmed. "They're called 'gummi blocks.' Apparently, because they're actually part of the barricades that hold the worlds separate, they have the ability to move past them and through space. So this 'Cid' guy put them together, crafted a ship and found that it had the ability to move between the barriers that hold the worlds apart. He was doing his preliminary test drive when he found the world that was swallowed up that night!"

"Amazing!" Mickey exclaimed as he jumped to his feet. "So it's really possible!"

"We'll be able to talk with this Ansem guy as soon as Chip and Dale are done building our very own gummi ship. We even found Mr. Highwind's basic schematics in one of our books."

"Golly, that's swell," the mouse said with a broad smile. "Well, that guarantees I'll be able to make a first move! First Mr. Ansem to learn something about these Heartless."

"'First,' Your Majesty?" Donald questioned.

"Yep. Next, I really want to talk to this Squall fellow."

Donald slapped his forehead, groaning as he dragged his fingers down his face and glowered at his liege. "Why?"

Blinking a few times, Mickey smiled serenely. "Simple. If we're going to help the worlds and rescue them from these Heartless, it'd help to have some experienced assistance on our side."

"And you want that guy, huh?"

"He's a professional mercenary. And a good one, according to everything I've read on him."

Donald huffed. "Mercenary, Your Majesty. Meaning he can be hired by anyone, right?"

"But this one's different," Mickey stated, waggling an accusatory finger at his friend. "This man has a good heart. I'm hoping he'll help us – it'd be great to have him."

"Well, while you're going ga-ga thinking about your future anti-Heartless army, why don't you look in to recruiting the guys that found gummi technology before we did?"

"Golly, you know, I just might do that!" Mickey said with a snap of his fingers.

Donald slapped his forehead again, his exasperated sigh rattling his bill.

---)))000(((---)))000(((---)))000(((---

"And that should be it, Your Majesty!" Dale proclaimed.

"After Bridget finished with the Gummi Garage, building went a lot more quickly than we'd thought it would," Chip said with a nod.

"Yeah, we never would've been able to do it without her," Dale sighed, his eyes glazing over and his smile sloppy.

"Snap out of it, Dale!" Chip bit as he smacked his companion's head.

Laughing lightly, Mickey slowly ran his gloved hand along the broad side of the newly constructed gummi. "Wow, would'ja look at that. It's quite a piece of work, boys."

"Thanks, Your Majesty!" the pair of engineers happily said, snapping rigidly upright even as they clicked their tiny heels together and offered their liege a pair of sharp salutes.

"So I can finally travel to other worlds. I can start seein' what it is I can do about this Heartless thing," Mickey softly said to himself even as he stepped onto the loading pad for the tiny, bright red ship that had been so hastily constructed.

His engineers waved as a giant white-gloved hand on the end of a robotic arm descended from the ceiling, snatching him up and tossing him with ease into the open cockpit of the gummi.

Gripping the controls as the cockpit lid swooshed shut right after his faithful dog Pluto had jumped in to join him, Mickey grinned as the ship turned to face a portal that resembled his royal seal. Huge numbers counted down on his consol.

Three.

Two.

One.

The mouse's voice was hoarse after he'd finished his bout of frightened screaming.

He'd never expected the ship to plunge out of the bottom of his Kingdom's world into deep space!

"Now you make certain to call us whenever you have trouble with your gummi, alright Your Majesty?" Chip's voice squeaked over the gummi's small hidden speakers.

"Sure thing, Chip!" Mickey confirmed with a smile and a nod.

"And make sure you're careful – the Gummi Garage's radar picked up some nasty looking things in your vicinity. Looks like those Heartless you were thinking of researching have gummi ship technology, too."

With a sigh, Mickey glanced more carefully to his controls, this time noting the firing buttons. A swift look outside confirmed the presence of a pair of cannons.

"Thanks for the tip, you guys. I'll be careful. Look for me – I won't be gone for long," the mouse promised even as he pushed experimentally at his controls.

As the ship lunged into motion, Mickey took a brief moment to pray that his engineers were as forward thinking and thorough as he believed them to be – after all, now it was only a few blocks of weird material between him and the vacuum of space… and whatever else was waiting for him out there.

_to be continued…_

* * *

A/N 2: Well, I was presented with this challenge over deviantart and decided to respond to it. After all, a Mickey-centric fic for Kingdom Hearts seems rather intriguing (and I need more distractions from BCD. Mwe heh heh). So some notes about this thing - it's not going to be anywhere near BCD in sheer girth for chapters, but on the flip side I'm not limiting chapter length either. So while this may only be a five or six chapter story, each chapter may hold the potential to be ridiculous in length. I don't know. We'll see as it progresses. And this does take place in the same 'universe' (re: authoress mindset) as BCD, so all of my assumptions concerning the FF7 and FF8 worlds and their ties with Kingdom Hearts carry over. For those of you who haven't read my BCD fic and have no intention of doing so, I'll be using this first chapter to disclose some of my thoughts of how to tie Final Fantasy and Disney together with this convoluted Radiant Garden prospect and what not. Hope you enjoy. 

A/N 3: Final author note! Promise! Chapter name is derived from who Mickey meets that is of utmost importance during that specific chapter. There we go. I personally thought that Donald was the most pivotal in this first chapter (or prelude chapter – however you prefer to look at it).

* * *

Well, so begins my response to a challenge. I hope you guys like it. 

Love it? Hate it? Use the handy little purplish button below! You know you want to...

And flames are welcome. They keep me warm in these cold winter months. (shiver) I hate Virginia. I want my deserts of Southern California back. Brrr.

(lobs her Ansem plushie at the monitor, grinning with satisfaction as it collides with a shout of "SUBMIT!")


End file.
